Heart of the Flame
by FlacoLacoTaco
Summary: This follows the adventures of the Flame Prince Zuko. When he comes across a young woman who knows more than what is on the surface, he doesn't know how to react.
1. Meeting Sereba

In the middle of the desert, a small town sat, where not many people seemed to live. It was a town in the Earth Kingdom, but it was still rather small. On the outskirts of town, a young man with a scar over his left eye was riding into town. He looked pale and sickly, and he was hungry enough to eat a skunk-bear. His name was Zuko. 3 years ago, he was banished from the Fire Nation, his home, for reasons that still made him sick to his stomache.

He entered into the town, and saw a vendor selling food on the side of the road. His stomache growled loudly, and ached for a warm meal. He rode to the vendor, and stepped off of his bird ride. He approached the vendor, and set one silver piece on the countertop. "Two bags of feed and a hot meal." The vendor took the coin. "It ain't enough for a hot meal. But I gots two bags of bird feed for ya." His stomache growled in hunger and pain. The man entered into his shop to get the feed.

Zuko heard an angered voice behind him. "Hey, you think it's funny to throw eggs at us?" He didn't respond. He wasn't in the mood to fight anyone. In fact, he didn't think he had the energy. The vendor brought out the bags of feed. Zuko went to grab it, but the men shoved him out of the way and took them. "Hey, thanks, kid. This'll help out our birds!" They strutted off, laughing cruelly.

Zuko watched them walk off, anger boiling in his gut. But, he let them go. He leapt onto his bird, and continued going through the town.

His stomache growled loudly, and his eyelids started to droop. He didn't think he had the energy to make it out of the town. He clutched his gut, and his grip on the reins loosened. His eyelids fell closed, and he fell back off his bird. It squawked out, and the last thing Zuko remembers before he passed out is somebody catching him.

Zuko awoke with a gasp. He was laying on a soft couch, and the scent of tomatoes and beef filled his nose. "Oh, you've finally awoken, Prince Zuko." His head turned to the voice. Standing by a small lit stove was a young woman. She had waist length jet black hair with a navy blue tint to it. Her skin was pale, as far as he could see. When she turned to him, he saw that her eyes were a vivid green color. She was wearing a long sleeved dark green shirt and white baggy slacks. She wore simple wood sandals.

She smiled at him before turning back to the stove. "My name is Sereba. I saw you fall off your bird, and sensed intense exhausting and hunger, along with a few other things." He raised his eyebrow, and looked around. "Um, where am I?" She glanced at him over her shoulder, and ladled something into a wooden bowl. "This is my home." She walked over to the couch, and set the wooden bowl along with a spoon on the table beside it. "Eat up." She went into the kitchen.

He glanced at the food, and sat up straight. The scent of tomatoes, beef, and a few seasonings took up the air. Without hesitation, he took the bowl and spoon, and ate the food hungrily. After a few moments of hurried eating, the bowl was totally empty. "Thank you," he said gratefully. She walked back into the living room with a bowl in her hand, and nodded. "Don't mention it."

A clock rang on the wall, and she looked over at it. "God damn it, I'm gonna be late for work." She set the bowl down on the table, and ran into a room in the hall. A few moments later, she came out, wearing the same clothes as before. She approached Zuko. "Well, Prince. Feel free to stop by my work place for a performance. On the house." She set down a tickey on the table, and walked to the door. "Don't break anything, please." She walked out of the door.

Zuko watched her walk off in confusion. She...she knew who he was. And yet...she wasn't scared. Or angry. She genuinely respected me, Zuko thought in confusion. He glanced at the ticket. Nothing else to do, might as well go to this place. He took the ticket, and left the house.


	2. The Performance

**Yeah, so, this is my first story. Sorry if it isn't very well written out or, well, whatever. Please leave reviews below. Here's chapter two.  
** -

Zuko walked out of the door, and looked around. His bird was tied to the fence in front of her home, with a large pile of birdseed in front of it. Sereba's house seemed to be out by the edge of town. Her home had a rather large yard, with cracks in the ground. Something glowing emitted from the cracks. Out of curiosity, Zuko walked over towards the cracks, and his eyes widened. Lava flowed through them, each of them directed to a fountain in her yard. The fountain was round, and he noticed lava barely flowing through the top of it into the pool below. Why would Sereba have a lava fountain in her front yard? Especially in an Earth village? He knew that Earth villagers went berserk if they learned one of their citizens was a fire bender. So what was the difference with lava?

He shrugged it off. He wasn't out here to learn about lava fountains. He turned and walked out of the yard. He looked down at the ticket. It had a street address on it, along with the words, " _Jelebet's Freak Show for the Curious Minds!"_ That peaked Zuko's curiosity. He strolled out of the yard, and started walking into town.

After walking for nearly half an hour, he came across the building. A large flashy sign that read " _Welcome to Jelebet's Freak Show! Come on in!"_ was plastered over the top of the building. He raised an eyebrow at the sign. Did Sereba really work at a freak show? As he scanned the sign, he heard a voice. "Hello, young man!" He jumped at the loud voice, and looked in the direction of it. A rather tall skinny man wearing a top hat and sporting a handlebar mustache and thick eyebrows leapt towards him. He jumped away from the man, on alert. The man landed on one foot, and lifted his other long, skinny leg into the air. "Hello, young chap! My name is Kiuko. Do you have a ticket for entry?"

Zuko looked up at Kiuko. He nodded. "Yeah." Kiuko extended his long twiggish arm towards Zuko, and Zuko placed the ticket in his hand. He lifted the ticket up, and squinted at it through narrowed eyes. "Oh, Sereba invited you!" He laughed slightly. "Hehe, I can see why, what with your similarities." Zuko raised his eyebrow. "Similarities? What does that mean?" Kiuko pushed a finger against Zuko's mouth, silencing him. "Shush, young man, and go find out."

Zuko shoved his arm away from his face. "Don't touch me!" He stormed past Kiuko into the building. A long dimly lit hallway led to a large door. Two figures clad in a black hooded robe stared Zuko down. He felt like they were staring through him, and it sent shivers up his spine. They looked at each other, and nodded. Two voices, one female and one male, spoke in a monotonous tone. "Welcome to the Freak Show for Curious Minds. Please, take your seat and enjoy the show." They each opened the large door with one hand, and Zuko walked in.

Hundreds of seats took up the stadium, and most of them were occupied. Zuko sat in a seat near the back, and looked toward the dark stage. Suddenly, lights turned on, illuminating the stage. A woman with dark skin, short frizzy hair, and light hazel eyes clad in what looked like Earthbender gi stood on the stage. "Hello, everybody, and welcome to Jelebet's Freak Show for the Curious Minds! I am Jelebet, and today we have a few rather interesting performances, including the Mirror Twins, the Magma Bender, and a few others! Stay seated, and try not to get too close. Our insurance doesn't cover blown minds!" Many people in the audience laughed.

Jelebet stepped off to the side. "First up are the Mirror Twins! They may seem separated and apart, but they both are in perfect sync! Prepare to be amazed!" She raised a hand, and two people stepped onto the stage. Applause seemed to fill up the stadium. The people on stage were the same two hooded figures at the door, but now they were unhooded. The girl had short spiky red hair, and yellow eyes that seemed to tear through everybody. The boy had long silky red hair that reached his waist, and eyes that were just as intense as his sisters. The two glanced at each other, and jumped away from each other. They both dropped their cloak and hood altogether, and what looked like lace fell to the ground around them. They both lifted the lace into the air simultaneously, and started twirling and spinning in the same manner.

Zuko soon became bored from the act. So they were moving together, so what? He saw more impressive feats from Ty Lee. After their act, they both stepped off stage, and everyone clapped loudly. Except Zuko. Jelebet stepped back onstage. "Well, now that we saw the Mirror Twins, time to bring out our very own Magma Bender!" Applause rang around Zuko. Then, Sereba stepped onstage, and his eyes widened.

Sereba was clad in a red bikini, and she wore pink lace on her arms and legs. Her hair was tied up into a messy bun. She was barefoot. But, her entire body, from her ankles to her wrists to her collarbone, was covered in pink scars and bruises. They almost covered all her skin, save for a few flesh-colored spots here and there. The floor opened up beneath her to be a pit of lava. She stood on one spot, a small platform out of stone that held her up. She looked through the crowd, and spotted Zuko. She looked him in the eye and smiled, before leaping into the lava.

Zuko stood up. "Sereba!" Then, something incredible happened. The lava from the pit rose up in a swirling vortex, and at the top of it was Sereba, her body spinning around creating the vortex. She pressed her arms out, and lava burst around her in a large bubble. It grew larger and larger, nearly reaching the people in the first row, before the top of it caved in on itself. Zuko sat back down, watching intently. He had never seen someone know this type of bending. Lavabending...was it even a real thing? The lava bubble swirled around Sereba's arms, turning themselves into long tendrils. She lifted them up into the air, and they swirled around, before she yanked them down. She created a swirling bubble in her arms, then threw the bubble into the air. She spread her arms out, and the bubble popped, sending lava everywhere. The audience screamed loudly, then the lava drops stopped in midair. Sereba had her arms out, freezing the drops. Then, she yanked her arms in, and the drops zoomed into the lava pit. The ground closed, and Sereba bowed.

Silence. Then, "Woooow!" Applause rang around the stadium louder than the performance before. "Thank you!" Sereba yelled, then walked off stage. Zuko watched her walk off in awe. A new type of bending... "Sereba!" He stood up, and ran out of the arena.

 **So, yeah. There's that. This fanfic is a Zuko x OC fanfic, just saying. Thanks for reading!**


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